When We Shared Consciousness
by PHXYote
Summary: Ever wondered how it came to be that Chapel and Spock shared consciousness in Return to Tomorrow? Here's my take.
Henoch left Chapel with a set of hypos and a very confused mind. She stared at the hypos, trying to sort out her jumbled memories. This much she could piece together:

Henoch asked—no, ordered—her to assist him in the pharma lab. Displeased, she glanced and McCoy, who shrugged, gave her a lopsided grin, and nodded. He clearly understood that she wasn't pleased with Henoch's manner although truth be told, it wasn't all that different from Spock's—

But first, there was _that smile_ , coming almost too soon after Henoch entered Spock's body. "Hello," he beamed up at her. And told her she was a very pretty female, adding that he hadn't seen one in half a million years. Was that an insult following a compliment? Following that too-sudden smile?

None of this explained why she felt something was wrong with the hypo labeled for Sargon. It was smaller than the other two—and wouldn't it be Henoch who needed a lower dose since he was in a much stronger Vulcan body?

But—Henoch was a guest on the ship and she knew how strongly the Captain felt about bending over backwards to accommodate guests. And these weren't just the usual meddling Starfleet brass or angry ambassador—these were representatives of a civilization they nearly missed altogether. A First Contact that almost came too late.

Henoch came back inside the lab to fetch her. "Shouldn't we store these hypos in a safe place?" he asked and smiled at her again. Even though it wasn't from Spock, that smile gave her a rush, followed by a deep sense of unease. Still, she returned his smile. No sense in giving him any reason to think she was aware that _something_ was wrong.

"Yes," she nodded. "I was just about to put them in stasis."

"Excellent," Henoch said, and offered her his arm. She took it, not at all reluctantly, she noted. Well, if she was never going to be this close to the real Spock, at least she could have a memory of what it _felt_ like to be close to his body. And she wasn't surprised to find he was quite solid in spite of looking so skinny. Vulcans, she knew, had denser body mass than Humans.

Which also made her wonder…no, no Christine, she admonished herself. _Don't go there_. No matter how tempting, she could not, would not, take advantage of the likelihood that Spock's body could be made available.

They returned to Sick Bay, where the orbs were humming away, and put the hypos in a stasis unit. She stole a glance at the orb storing Spock's consciousness, noting it flickered far more quickly than the Captain's and Dr. Mulhall, that smarty-pants who came aboard seemingly out of nowhere.

"Ya'd think someone with a doctorate would question someone she can't see nor hear ordering her about the ship," Scotty had complained to her and Uhura. "She just stood there batting her eyes at the Captain saying, well, she got her orders. And Spock of all people jumps in to say they was jus' like his orders."

Uhura shook her head. "Spock's 'orders' were a threat—they turned off the power on the Bridge!" She and Chapel exchanged looks. "Where the hell _did_ she come from?"

 _And what does she want with_ _ **our**_ _Vulcan_? they each thought.

Chapel blinked hard. _Stop daydreaming, dammit, concentrate_!

Henoch was saying something—he wasn't sure but he thought he might be hungry. Would she accompany him to the mess?

Yes, of course.

Inside, he seemed eager to try everything in sight. Cheese, fruits, soup, and –whoa there— _corned beef_?

"Henoch, you shouldn't eat meat," she said.

"And why not, Blue Eyes?"

She bit back a grin. "Because Mr. Spock is a vegetarian. He does not consume animal flesh."

"Well Mr. Spock isn't here so what he doesn't know won't hurt him, will it?"

She tried to persuade him that Spock's body probably couldn't digest meat. It was completely foreign to it. Wouldn't he like to try a veggie burger instead?

An hour later, she was standing behind Henoch in a Sick Bay head. He was throwing up not just the meat but a good amount of what looked like tomato soup (she hoped).

 _Serves him right_.

McCoy walked by and asked what the hell was going on. "Henoch pigged out at lunch," she explained. "He ate meat."

"You didn't stop him?" McCoy asked, his eyes bugging out the way they did when he was upset.

"Of course I _tried_. I warned him that meat could make Spock's body sick. He didn't care—he just wanted to experience eating, I guess."

McCoy sighed. "The physical experiences are overwhelming Sargon and Thalassa, too. Every damn time I go in to check on them, they're making out. Thank god Jim is up to date on his birth control.

"I'm really worried, though, Chris. It's taking a lot longer than they said it would to build those bodies. If they don't come up for air, they're gonna run out of time."

"Maybe we can send Henoch in to help." That would also get him out of her orbit.

"Nah, I already suggested that. Thalassa says Henoch isn't much help. I get the distinct impression that he wasn't one of the intellectual leaders down there."

Henoch stumbled out of the head. "So the Vulcan body isn't as foolproof as you thought, is it, Henoch?" Chapel nearly sneered and instantly regretted it. It _was_ Spock's body that was being abused.

Henoch went to lie down next to the Spock orb, which seemed to be flashing more insistently. He fell asleep almost instantly. Unusual, since Vulcans didn't sleep much.

"Well, that knocked him out," McCoy commented. "Spock's been up most of the past three days. Guess it's better to let him sleep than keep him awake and get in more trouble."

An hour later, Chapel signed off duty and retired to her cabin. She needed some sleep herself.

Later, she awoke, showered, and dressed in a fresh uniform even though she wasn't due to sign back on to duty for another eight hours. Something was still bugging her. Something still didn't seem right.

She headed back to Sick Bay. Henoch had departed and the Spock orb was a little less active. Was he sleeping?

She walked over to the orb and gently touched it.

She felt a slight shock. Before she could draw her hand back, she heard, or rather felt, Spock speaking:

 _Nurse Chapel. Do not remove your hand. Please, I must speak with you._

 _Mr. Spock?_

 _Yes?_

 _Mr. Spock, I'm so glad—so glad I can hear you. Things are really, really screwed up. Henoch is playing games with my memory._

 _I know. I knew as soon as Henoch and I passed one another. He intends to…take advantage of you-_

 _Well, he won't. I promise you, I won't let that happen._

 _Not just you. Nyota, Thalassa, that cute little nurse who's monitoring Jim's body—pretty much every female he sees, he wants to "seed."_

Chapel felt grossed out. _Ickickickick. And with Spock's lovely lithe body-_

 _Christine, I can hear you._

She rolled her eyes. _None of this should be a surprise to you._

He chose to ignore that. _We must work together to stop him. I propose that we share consciousness in your body._

 _My body? Why not the Captain's? Or Dr. Whoosiewatsy's?_

 _The Captain's body is too weak and anyway, he is being monitored. I do not want to risk anyone knowing of our plan. I assume Dr. Whoosiewatsy is a reference to Dr. Mulhall. But I am not in a position to ask her permission to be in her body. I am asking for yours._

 _You want to be in my body?_

 _In your mind, to be exact._

 _I wasn't implying—_

 _No need to go there. That is a conversation for another day. Right now, time is of the essence. We do not know where Henoch is and we have little time to prepare. Are you in?_

 _Aye, aye sir._

 _Put both your hands on the orb._

She did, and felt an intense tingling and then—there he was, inside her consciousness.

 _This is a very crowded place. Are you getting enough sleep?_

 _It's been a busy couple of weeks. I'm training that 'cute little nurse' you noticed and we still have two vacancies. So no, I haven't been getting *enough* sleep._

 _That is why it is so crowded. You need to dream to sort out your thoughts. May I look around?_

 _No. Well, ok, you can look over there._

 _You have an excessive amount of shoes, Christine._

 _A girl can daydream. I swear, I will never wear boots again once my tour of duty is up._

 _And what it this-?_

 _That, Mr. Spock, is my future home._

 _That is a very large large bathroom. With a chocolate fountain—you are quite a sensualist, Christine. And do you really require so many Tribbles?_

 _Yes. Anything else you're burning to see?_

 _Just—I did not realize you are considering medical school. I would have thought you would want to complete your doctorate._

 _I'm looking into a dual MD/PhD program, it's over there—see it?_

 _Ah yes, I do. Very impressive._

 _Thank you. Now tell me your plan_.

And that's it. As you know, Chapel fakes being under Henoch's spell, which must have been quite an effort as she was effectively ignoring Uhura's screams. We have to assume Spock was blocking her view.

And afterward, when Spock had vacated her body and reclaimed his, they got together for a very informal debriefing. In his quarters.

"I regret I cannot provide you with the bathroom of your dreams, but I hope you will enjoy your water shower."

Christine sighed up into the spray. "It's still lovely, Spock. I will never be a fan of sonic showers."

"I will leave you to it."

Spock stepped outside his bathroom and closed the door. In two strides, he reached his tiny kitchenette and began to work.

Christine emerged from his shower ten minutes later, wrapped in a warm robe, looking pink and happy. She spied something on his coffee table and padded over to investigate.

It was a pot. A fondue pot. She lifted the lid and saw it: a lovely pool of chocolate. Spock came up behind her holding a platter of sliced fruit.

"It is not exactly the chocolate fountain I saw, but it is a beginning."

She laughed up at him. "It's wonderful!"

He quirked an eyebrow. "Anything for you, Blue Eyes."

* * *

A/N: I just watched this episode. Did anyone else notice that adorable little nurse who appeared in one brief scene? She's absolutely dwarfed by the guys around her. She has one line, telling McCoy that Kirk's organs are no longer working. As if he didn't know.


End file.
